On Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, Rentals.ca released a report indicating that rental asking prices in British Columbia for apartments continue to lead the country in declines, down 12.1% in the past three years.

In Vancouver, apartment rental prices have fallen by 7.9% compared to this time last year and have dropped 13.8% over three years.

In other communities, such as New Westminster, overall rents in the community are down 15.4% from this time last year. In Coquitlam, asking prices are down 14% from last year.

The report is available here: https://rentals.ca/national-rent-report

Christine Boyle, Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs, has issued the following statement:

“We’re focused on improving housing affordability for British Columbians.

“Since 2017, our government has worked to strengthen protections for renters, crack down on speculation and implement changes to help build more rental homes across B.C. These efforts are showing results. According to the latest data from Rentals.ca, our actions are paying off.

“This work is further underscored from reporting last month by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. Its report demonstrated that vacancy rates throughout the province have increased substantially over the past year to 3.7% in Greater Vancouver and 3.3% in Greater Victoria, the highest they’ve been in decades. Additionally in 2025, 25,855 purpose-built rental homes were registered, up almost 40% compared to 2024.

“I recently heard a story from Chase Thomson, a high school teacher living in Burnaby, who was able to renegotiate his rent with his landlord and reduce it by $300 a month because asking rents for similar apartments in his building had decreased. This shows how our housing initiatives are delivering real results – real savings of $3,600 a year for Chase and a chance for so many other seniors, growing families and young adults to find homes within their budgets.

“Our work won’t stop here. We will continue to build on this momentum, so more people can find homes within the communities they know and love. Just this past December, we helped open more than 110 homes for seniors in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, helping them to find security, stability and a sense of belonging.

“This work builds on our commitment to deliver more affordable rental options across the province and follows through on our commitment to build more homes for people faster.

“We need to stay on this course, so we don’t fall back into the patterns that allowed housing to become unaffordable for far too many. This coming year, I look forward to seeing new affordable homes take shape throughout the province, as we continue to innovate and deliver the housing solutions that will help bring more homes into people’s reach.”